Stephen Este |
Jul 24th, 2000 07:10 PM |
Good Hotels in Florence and Cinque Terre
<BR>If you are thinking of going to Cinque Terre, it was ungodly crowded in May. I really advise tryng the small town of Levanto. We found it far less touristed than any of the five villages. There is a very nice B&B there called the Villa Margeherita. Very, very nice multilingual management (Federico) who helped us track down lost backpacks from the airport in Milan. Nice hillside setting with views of the ocean, pleasant garden. There was a diverse mix of ages and nationalities staying there. There are very good restaurants in town, a couple of decent bars, and a fair beach. We were only going to stay two nights and stayed four. The Cinque terre is easily accessible by either foot or train from there. They have a website at www.villamargherita.net. <BR> <BR> <BR>In Florence, if you have a car, you may want to check out the Villa I Cipressi. You get the best of both Florence and the Tuscan landscape. Monica and her family rent out rooms in a very pleasant old villa with a huge patio and a surrounding countryside of classic Tuscan cypresses. The rooms are huge and well appointed. You can hang out with the family or be completely left alone depending on your tastes. They can give you great specific instructions of things to see and do and how to get there. It is only 6 km south of Firenze yet seems way out in the country. You can park in the town and then take the city bus into downtown Firenze (about 45 minutes total in traffic) to avoid the nightmare of driving there. Also it is a good base to explore the rest of Tuscany. The 222 heads south toward Sienna.We drove all over every day and returned there at night. From Florence Sud Exit head south toward Impruneta on the 222 about 6 km and there will be a sign on the left. Go down a long gravel road and you're there. They speak English and can be reached at 055 2301089.
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